


The Fire Still Burns

by ShadowLurker



Category: Wonder Woman (2017)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-29
Updated: 2017-07-29
Packaged: 2018-12-08 07:08:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11641497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowLurker/pseuds/ShadowLurker
Summary: Antiope remembers everything, but one night in particular will always be with her.





	The Fire Still Burns

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: covers dark subject matter (rape and slavery.) Do not read if these subjects upset you.

Antiope remembers everything about their time in slavery, languishing in the dungeons of Men. There is one particular night, though, that is seared into her mind’s eye forever.

_It is growing cold; the dark stone of the dungeon surrenders the faint warmth of the day. Through the one iron grille set high in the western wall - the only side of the dungeon that is part of the outer ring of the fortress - Antiope can see the sky deepening from the red and gold of sunset to the purple of twilight. She shifts her position, trying to ease the cramps in her legs._

_A sharp rattle cuts through the air as the chains that bind her wrists strike the floor, sending a faint spark jumping. One of the younger Amazons gasps in fear; it is Rala, Antiopes judges. The girl is only sixteen and understandably terrifed, having never experienced the brutality of war before. Menalippe speaks in a low, soothing voice, trying to reassure Rala that all will be well. Apparently Menalippe’s reassurance has some effect, for Rala quietens._

_The light in the dungeon is dim, for the torches sputtering fitfully outside the doors provide only a faint light through the grille in the middle of the wood, yet Antiope knows all her sisters are there with her: Menalippe, Philippus, Epione, Artemis, and so many more, all in chains in the surprisingly large dungeon._

_And Hippolyta._

_She painfully cranes her head to see her sister shackled to the wall on her right, leaning her head back against the cold stone. Hippolyta’s hair spilled around her shoulders, no longer held back by her crown. Like all the others, she wore only a rough tunic, for her armor had been forcibly stripped off when they were captured. Antiope could barely see that the skin of Hippolyta’s wrists was already chafed raw by the manacles, thin trickles of blood running slowly down her hands and fingers to drip on the floor._

_The sight makes Antiope’s blood boil. It has been at least a week since their imprisonment, and their captors have repeatedly gloated about having the Amazons at their mercy. Antiope knows these Men are cruel, for she has seen the leers on their faces and heard the verbal abuse they have hurled at the Amazons - perfectly willing followers of their patron, Ares, the God of War._

_The sound of the dungeon door opening interrupts Antiope’s thoughts. Torchlight flares brightly and she blinks, unaccustomed to the light, down here in the deepest part of the fortress. When her vision clears, she sees the leader of the Men standing there, surveying his captives with a grim smile that is almost a leer. He does not seem in the least fazed by the smell of blood or worse. He is tall for his race, with shoulder length dark blond hair that is pulled into a tail at the nape of his neck. His armor gleams silver in the torchlight. A long sword hangs at his waist, the hilt and scabbard both of pure gold. He is younger than she had expected him to be, perhaps no more than twenty-five. Had she met him in other circumstances she would have thought him handsome, but with the cruel smirk on his lips, she sees nothing more than a beast, gloating over his prey. Curses fill the air and several of her bolder sisters try to spit on him, but he is unfazed by their rage, still smirking arrogantly._

_“Enough!” Hippolyta’s voice rings out and the others immediately quiet, obeying their Queen’s command, though their poisonous glares do not falter._

_The leader looks directly at Hippolyta then and commands, “Free her.” Two guards enter the dungeon, the door quickly closing and locking behind them, and unlock Hippolyta’s manacles, keeping a firm grip on her arms as they drag her before the lord._

_“Leave her alone!” Menalippe shouts. “Don’t you dare touch our Queen, you beast!”_

_His smirk only widens as he reaches out to stroke Hippolyta’s cheek. “So beautiful.” Hippolyta jerked her head back, glaring at him. Antiope snarled under her breath and yanked at her chains, though she knew it was a futile effort. He glances at her, then turns back to Hippolyta. “And full of fire, too.” The smirk vanishes and his voice went cold as ice. “But that fire must be quenched. You must be taught what your true place is now.” He steps back as the guards force Hippolyta to her knees._

_Antiope is puzzled as to what he has in mind - until he unbuckles his belt and drops it to the floor. Instantly, she knows, as do the others, for they cry out as one in protest. He pays them no heed._

_The following sight is what Antiope will never forget: Hippolyta on the stone floor with her tunic around her hips and the man on top of her, pinning the Queen’s arms above her head with one hand. Several of her sisters are weeping at the sight. Philippus, Epione, and Menalippe curse the Man, but Antiope sits against the wall as if turned to stone, watching her sister. Hippolyta makes no sound, and keeps her eyes on the ceiling._

_Once he is done and presentable again, the leader looks down at Hippolyta lying on the floor. “Let this be a lesson to you,” he says coldly, before he turns on his heel and strides out of the dungeon. The guards drag Hippolyta back to her place beside Antiope and chain her hands once more before departing themselves._

_Near silence reigns once the Men are gone. Antiope shifts closer to Hippolyta, forcing herself to look at her sister and Queen even as her heart breaks. “Hippolyta ...”_

_Her sister turns her head toward her, her eyes closed. “Don’t worry, Antiope. I’ll be all right.”_

_Abruptly the door opens again and two more guards, both only youths of perhaps sixteen or seventeen, enters. “Get out!” Antiope hisses furiously. “Haven’t you done enough already?!”_

_The boys look taken aback at her venom, but hesitantly extend a bowl - filled with water, Antiope sees - and a cloth toward them. “Here,’ one says. They both glance skittishly in the direction of the door, then look back at Antiope. “For her,’ the other adds. He looks at Hippolyta, but just as quickly looks away. “Best to be quick about it.”_

_Antiope understands immediately; these children have defied their elders in bringing water down here for the imprisoned Amazon Queen, and if they are caught, the punishment would be severe. She respects their courage in doing so, but if they are foolish enough to think one act of kindness will save them when the Amazons win their freedom, they are sorely mistaken._

_She nods. “You’ll have to unchain me.” They both gape at her, but she shakes her head impatiently. “I can’t help her with my hands bound.” After a moment one reluctantly nods to his friend before stepping back out in the corridor, drawing his sword as he does so. The other warily comes forward and quickly unlocks Antiope’s manacles before stepping swiftly back and drawing his own sword._

_It would be easy, Antiope knows, so easy to overwhelm them both, break out of the dungeon, and fight for their freedom, but Hippolyta needs her now. She accepts the bowl and cloth before kneeling beside her sister. “Antiope,” Hippolyta murmurs. Antiope swallows back the impulse to weep and says, “I’ll try to be as gentle as I can, but this may hurt.”_

_“I trust you,” is her sister’s response._

_As gently as she can, Antiope eases Hippolyta’s legs apart and wipes away the blood staining her sister’s thighs. There is still a faint trickle of fresh blood, but Antiope knows there is nothing to be done but wait for it to stop on its own. A faint groan is the only sound the Queen makes during the entire process._

_Once she was finished, her hands chained once more, and the young guards gone, Antiope was nearly asleep when she heard Hippolyta say, “Antiope.” She turned to look at her sister, whose eyes blazed with a determined fire. “He’s wrong,” the Queen said quietly. “The fire has not been diminished. If anything, it burns brighter.” She raised her voice slightly so their sisters could hear. “I promise you, sisters, one day we will escape. We may be at their mercy for now, and the rest of you may suffer the same fate I have suffered this night, but we must be strong. Our time will come, and we will have our freedom. Do not give up hope.” Her words have the intended effect; from that night on until the night they make their escape, no matter what physical abuse they endure at the hands of Men, hope and defiance live still._

_As Antiope looks back at Hippolyta with the same determined fire in her eyes, they both know there is a long road ahead - but the Amazons will never submit._


End file.
